What is TNB?
At 32 years old, I found myself unable to fully participate in my life due to morbid obesity. I was miserable and ashamed. I believed that food was bad and I was bad for eating it. I wanted to lose the weight and I wanted to lose it now. I tried countless diets, pills, bingeing, purging, and even starvation. Occasionally, I would try to exercise and I would go so intensely and for so long that I would end up exhausted and defeated and eventually just give up. It felt hopeless.
I knew logically that to lose weight and keep it off one had to undergo a lifestyle change, but the phrase really didn’t mean anything to me. In 2006, my cousin Nikki was diagnosed with lymphoma at 30 years old. Her illness brought to light just how fragile life is and shocked me into realizing how much harm I was doing to myself. I realized I was taking my life for granted and decided it was time to start living again.
After losing over 75lbs, I released my before and after story on my personal trainers website. I was overwhelmed by the response from friends and family. I had no idea how many women were struggling with their own weight and body issues resulting in feelings of depression and low self-esteem. Many ate to deal with those feelings. It was a vicious cycle. I felt I had to do something.
Fortunately, I knew other women who had either won the battle or had never fought the battle due to their positive lifestyle choices. These women are marathoners, tri-athletes, aerobics instructors, cake baker/decorators, moms, philanthropists, practicers of yoga, hikers/climbers, actresses, animal lovers, softball & soccer players, scuba divers, musicians, toastmasters, teachers, a vegan (or two), writers, etc so they have real world experience balancing their health and wellness with the rest of their lives. I knew we could make a difference.
This is the first step toward making that difference. We bring you the new beautiful as a means of bringing to life exactly what it means to live a “healthy lifestyle”. The new beautfiul is not about being a size 0, or depriving ourselves, our harming our bodies in any way to reach some impossible ideal. The new beautiful is the voice of everyday women balancing their health and wellness with their jobs, families, and other activities. It is about real women in real life maintaining strong, flexible, capable bodies, hearts, and minds. We hope you discover your own “new beautiful”.
